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NewsCAP: Pacifiers may not disrupt breastfeeding

Pacifiers may not disrupt breastfeeding. The World Health Organization recommends that pacifiers not be given to breastfeeding babies, and some experts believe that pacifiers cause babies to suck on breasts less, leading to less milk and the cessation of breastfeeding. A new study in the March Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews suggests, however, that during the first four months of a baby's life, highly motivated women who'd begun breastfeeding soon after birth are able to use pacifiers to comfort babies between breastfeedings. Combined data from 1,302 women and infants showed that by four months, the numbers of babies exclusively or partially breastfed were nearly identical in the pacifier and nonpacifier groups. The authors recommend that "until further information becomes available on the effects of pacifiers on the infant, mothers who are well motivated to breastfeed be enabled to make a decision on the use of a pacifier based on personal preference."